SONG-A-WEEK: A LETTER ~ RICK BERLIN

taken from a real letter sent to me by a friend in the pokey

i met michael anthony houseworth on the street, downtown, during a brief but intense crack coke period in my life. (crack smells like burring sneakers when it's smoked.) we had that fiery closeness that can happen late in the morning with 2 strangers crazy ripped on dope. it felt real, and was, in certain ways, but then again… not to be counted on. we fooled around in all the wrong, scary places, but of course that only excited the vibe. back then he was a knockout beauty, and, through the 'trade', knew a lotta closeted or semi-closeted big shots around town, especially in the music biz. it all caught up with him and he wound up in jail, where his tough-guy cred and recent past was challenged. from there he wrote me this awesome letter (transcribed into my song). when he got out i was able to play it for him. tears fell.

photo from 'Shoeshine Boys' 1947 by Vitorro DeSica

from the HI-N-DRY CD, Me & Van Gogh

using Mark Sandman's piano

Produced by Rick Berlin, Billy Conway + Tom Dube
Engineered + mixed by Tom Dube
Recorded at HI-N-Dry

Mastered at JPMasters by Dave Locke
Photos: Rick
CD Design: Shaun Wolf Wortis

SONG-A-WEEK: RIMBAUD OF SOMERVILLE ~ RICK BERLIN

 

Rough demo. From the awkward heart.

The photo is of Dai Bradley in the Boston performance of EQUUS. I met him at a club, he got me a seat on stage. At the time I had no clue, nor had I seen KES (possibly in the top 10 all time greats. By Ken Loach). I use this picture because, seeing the play as well as reading Rimbaud and at long last transcribing writings of mine from the 1970's, I am taken back to my years spent with Michael Weaver. I miss him. I miss how we were.

SONG-A-WEEK: DEVIL RAT ~ RICK BERLIN

Rough demo. Hope to put it on the next record.

Robby saw these creatures, for real. Actually (though I changed it up in the lyrics) from his back
porch across Centre St from the old Milky Way. Nasty red eyes. 'I'm not sure' he explained, 'if they were rats or skunks or rabbits or cats but they freaked me out. All by myself at 4AM on my porch.'

SONG-A-WEEK: PIAF ~ RICK BERLIN

 

(From a series of rough GarageBand demos I've stuck up on Bandcamp.)

I came late as a believer in Edith. I did respond to her voice in the same visceral way I responded to Billie Holiday, Judy Garland and Nina Simone (it always seems to be the women in the voice-of-truth category. After I saw the french biopic about her, I was head-over-heels about this woman. The song lifted out of me, total cabaret but not camp.

PIAF

she opened her mouth
her body shook
fist like a rock
against her breast
then the war went crazy
+ the bullets flew
+ boys were dyin'
+ love meant death
again

l'amour, toujours l'amour...

a tiny sparrow
with a giant voice
a wounded mouth
enormous eyes
+ her fingers burn
+ her life explodes
in the city of light
she made us feel
again

l'amour, toujours l'amour...

i adore her
but i don't know her
a voice like a whore in a choir
like a gun in a church

l'amour, toujours l'amour...

crowd on its feet
their hearts in their throats
they could feel every note:
she lost everyone she loved
frail from drugs
+ crooked with age
afraid of nothin'
she looked up
she shurgged
+ sang

l'amour, toujours l'amour...

SONG-A-WEEK: LOVE ON A WIRE ~ RICK BERLIN

OK. It's the end of the year. Last day before the turn. I'd thought of posting WE'RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER (including the Obama Victory Speech video) but thought, even as I consider the speech and the election as somehow beyond politics, too specific. Too external. I almost posted a new song about my cat, Sofi (SENSITIVE GIRL) until then I remembered this one - LOVE ON A WIRE. Partly because Ferris Mueller covers it with such feeling and surprises me that the song exists (I forget them so quickly). And partly because it's of the heart, of the inner being and not of the material world which can be and has lately been horrific and gruesome. Ultimately I chose it for the simple reason that, unpredictably and inexplicably, this last month has, from the deep heart and clear eyes of many of my friends and family, shown me love in the simplest and most powerful way. I have been astonished. Moved. Humbled. As always, love, unadulterated, is the reason we survive, year after year in the face of God knows what pain and hardship and mountain climbing difficulty. I am profoundly lucky and grateful to everyone for this their quiet gift to me, and from me back to them. Sentimental? Sure. I'm a raging romantic once the lid is pried off the sarcasm. But it is love, and has always been, that keeps me moving and making 'art'. And this is a song about Sammy. My awesome nephew and band mate. His is as pure a soul and as good-hearted a kid as any I've known.

Love to all, and to all a good year,

Rick

VIDEO
(shot and edited by Todd Drogy and Nathan Mondragon)

This tune's off OLD STAG recorded in my livingroom (details below).

from OLD STAG, track released 14 September 2008
cello katie franich
v2 christina hornby
v1 meredith cooper
viola joe simcox
string arranger brendan cooney (Buried Beds, Dr. Dog)
produced by rick berlin
album recorded by joe stewart in rick's livingroom
(strings recorded in a classroom at bu)
mixed by david minehan at woolly mammoth sound
photos by rene rives
jacket design shaun wolf wortis
mastered by dave locke, jp masters
all songs by berlin
lobsterland music ascap
bar code from hell